


A Faint, Young Love

by Denebola_Leo



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII
Genre: And by that I mean no he's not, Betaed, Cat, Cloud is the smoothest of smooth talkers, Dorky Kid, F/M, Learning To Communicate, Nibelheim, Worldbuilding, Young Love, Youthful Plans, childhood crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-06
Updated: 2019-02-06
Packaged: 2019-10-23 12:51:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17683808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Denebola_Leo/pseuds/Denebola_Leo
Summary: Cloud Strife is a fourteen year old with big plans for his future, and they're for a simple goal: get Tifa Lockhart to notice him.But how can he even tell her about his plans when he never speaks to her?





	A Faint, Young Love

**Author's Note:**

  * In response to a prompt by [Denebola_Leo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Denebola_Leo/pseuds/Denebola_Leo) in the [FinalheavenServerFeb2019](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/FinalheavenServerFeb2019) collection. 



> For the February Final Heaven Cloti Discord server. The theme is love, prompt is cats. Thanks to Kelleyj17 for a quick beta!

December was never a good month to be out and about in the morning in Nibelheim, but Cloud Strife was a teenager with goals. The cold would toughen him up as he did his daily hike through the woods and mountain trails. He didn't stray too far from the village, just far enough where he could put up a snare for a critter or spot a stray Nibel wolf. He wasn't ready to fight with anything more than that.

He found the traps he had laid out yesterday used; a couple of fat squirrels and a rabbit were dead in the snares and waiting to be collected. Cloud took his time in the dim light of dawn gutting the creatures before walking back down to town. His mother would use the meat for stew, and he would sell the thick winter pelts to the trader who came in once a week for some extra gil.

Cloud kept his posture and gait imposing as he walked through the gates, neither he nor the guard greeting the other. He was a pariah in this backwater village, unloved by everyone but his mother. He didn't care, or at least he told himself that; these people were beneath him. One day he would show them that.

He marched past the water tower and towards the cottage he called home, watching as smoke lazily puffed out of the chimney. The roof was a rust red like the other houses in Nibelheim, a tradition to keep away Odin during his Wild Hunt down the mountain and through the Nibel Valley. It was believed, he was taught, that the color signified dried blood and the god would look elsewhere for a fresh kill.

He would have appreciated a different color, if he were being honest with himself.

Cloud entered the cozy insides of the cottage, his mother already working on breakfast. She turned to gaze at her son with rich blue eyes as he came towards the kitchen from the hallway, her hand still holding the wooden spoon that stirred their morning oatmeal. She wasn't particularly old, barely in her thirties as it was. He walked into the kitchen and began to skin his kills in a corner she let him use specifically for that.

"How was your hike?" she asked him. His mother had been hesitant to let him roam in the early morning hours, but over the months since his thirteenth birthday he had proven that he could handle himself. It kept him out of more trouble with the village boys, too, and she appreciated that.

He shrugged. "Same as always." 

"Hm." His mother took a look at the skinned critters as they hung from hooks on the wall, then tucked a strand of her golden hair behind her ear. "I'll render the fat from those squirrels after I roast them tonight, and tomorrow I can use the rabbit in a stew."

Cloud smiled at the thought of her stew. "Great."

She nodded, then studied him. "Cloud, have you been keeping up with your studies?"

He stiffened, then nodded. He stopped going to the small school that taught children of all ages when he was ten. Still, Cloud would never let those children be smarter than him. The library, while small, was quiet and filled with books on just about any subject he could think of, thanks to the Shinra.

As the other children would go to the school near the north edge of the village he would go to the library and study whatever interested him. Certainly his mother told him to keep up on his Standard lessons so he didn't sound like one of the old geezers that spoke it broken and with the heaviest of accents. Cloud was quite fluent in his opinion, but his accent couldn't be helped, since everyone in the village had one.

But other than that, he was free to choose. It was how he learned how to trap animals, how he learned first aid and the uses of certain local plants. When he overheard what the other children were taught, he began to learn that, too. He wasn't sure how right he was, but who really needs algebra?

She stroked Cloud's ponytail. "Still keeping this?"

Cloud snorted. "Of course."

He went to his room while his mother continued to cook. When he was twelve he helped partition off this part of the house, giving him some privacy. His bed was to one side of the wall, oak and covered in several handmade quilts to keep him warm. There was cedar chest and a wooden dresser with his clothing, and a poster he had pinned to the wall of Sephiroth, the greatest of Soldier and someone Cloud looked up to as a hero.

He put his hand under his bed and snatched up a small pouch, then left to go outside again. He glanced at his neighbor as she hurriedly made her way out the door and towards the school, the top of her head covered in a dark blue knitted cap and her oversized and thick coat, made of soft leather.

His glance turned into a gaze as he watched her chocolate brown hair sway with her gait. She held a book pouch on her shoulder and she turned towards Sleip street. She turned her head his way, her mahogany eyes watching him with more than a little wariness.

Tifa.

Cloud swallowed, blinked a few times when he noticed she was watching him back, and marched towards the side of his house and out of sight. His cheeks were burning, but it had to be the slight wind causing it. He didn't blush. They always burned when she noticed him. His heart always raced a little faster when he caught a look at those warm eyes of hers, or when he heard the lilt of her giggle. When he had a bad day or lost fight to another boy, he would listen to her practice her piano in her room. At least once he thought she may have caught him looking up towards her window, but she never stopped playing.

He wasn't really sure why he was attracted to her in the first place, he simply was. Maybe it was how sweet she seemed to everyone around her, or how she seemed so carefree. As he reached puberty what had been a mysterious infatuation with his neighbor had become a full on crush, despite not really communicating with her that much at all. She had been guarded around him ever since he failed to save her from a fall on Mount Nibel; his constant fights with the other children never curried her favor, either.

It all served a purpose, of course. He just didn't know it until recently.

A squeak caught his attention as he reached his destination. Behind the holly bush was a little makeshift shelter made of sticks, dirt and straw on the outside and lined with furry skins on the inside. Cloud moved the stone windbreak away, and was greeted to a long line of mewls from a very hungry kitten that stood proudly at the mouth of the shelter, its white tail up in greeting. He smiled at it, then rubbed the side of its head.

He had found the fluffy little kitten outside the walls of Nibelheim, alone and shivering from the cold while he did his jogging laps. A pang of pity had gone through him, and he had scooped the little cat up and took it home. He didn't think his mother would appreciate another mouth to feed, so he spent the afternoon making a little place for it to live on the side of the cottage. It was well hidden, warm and protective.

Cloud scooped out some of the soft kibble he had in his pouch and put it on the ground near the kitten. It ravenously helped itself to the food, ignoring everything but that while Cloud kept watch. When his mother went to work at the goat farm down the road from the village he would sneak some fresh meat to the feline and make sure its little home was warm enough. January would be a dangerous month for the kitten, and he wondered if he could ease his mother into letting it stay inside during the winter. 

Maybe if he caught enough critters, he thought. But, they would be scarce in the coming months. He wondered if he could snare a wolf or a deer, but decided he would figure that out later.

The kitten was purring as it finished its meal and lapped at the small bowl of water that hadn't frozen over completely yet. Cloud was going to have to get more warm water for it. "Hey, kitty. Time to go back inside." It meowed at him, and he rubbed under the kitten's chin. At least someone besides his mother enjoyed his company. "I'll be back later to play with you."

It wasn't confined to the shelter, but it hadn't strayed far from it. Cloud would see it from time to time when he was out of the house. He pet it one last time, then went into the house to eat breakfast with his mother. When she left, he cleaned the dishes and then began his exercise reps in his room. Squats, push ups and crunches, all the while thinking of his master plan: joining Soldier. 

Tifa would have to notice him then.

Then she would know how special he was. He would be strong, strong enough to fight off dragons, and he would be famous. After all, some of the most prominent Soldiers had fan clubs. All of Nibelheim would cherish him as a hero born in the village instead of treating him like a trouble making outsider then. And Tifa, she would fall for him, and he would be worthy enough to ask her out.

Cloud had to be tough, and strong, and brave. He hoped that when he entered Shinra's military in the spring that it would help his plan to gain Tifa's attention see fruition. It immediately hit him that no one would be there for the kitten the following winter, and he stopped his squat rep to think about what he could do. Maybe his mother would take it in. If he was gone then she could easily afford some kibble, and let it sleep near the hearth. Maybe if he told her it would chase away any mice that thought the cottage a good place to stay, she would welcome it.

After he was done he went outside in just a sleeveless shirt and brown fabric pants. The cold morning made him brace, but it was nowhere near as bad as it had been when he began his regimen last year. The air had the scent of pines and snow from the mountains. He caught a look at Mr. Lockhart, the mayor, as he made his way towards the town hall. They both sized each other up before going on with their business, neither appreciating the other's existence much.

He began his daily jog around the walls of the village, mindful of any hostile wildlife that might think him a worthy snack. All the while he continued to think about Tifa. He couldn't doubt his plans now, not after the acceptance letter from the military had come through the mail the day before. She would notice him, especially when he was as great as Sephiroth himself. It would be a lot of hard work, but it would be worth it. 

It would be worth it, to be strong for her.

It would be worth it, to be famous for her.

It would be worth it, to be able to protect her.

The thought was a jab in the chest, and he pumped his legs harder. He had failed the last time she was in danger. No, he wouldn't let it happen again. He wondered what it must be like to be given a thankful embrace by Tifa. The most he ever got was a lingering gaze that asked if he was a danger. Maybe to her stupid friends, but not to her, not at all. If the villagers couldn't tell that he had been trying to save her they were too stupid to set straight.

Not that they listened to his mother either, but he digressed. Fools.

He finished his laps, then went back home to clean himself up in the shower, then he made a small lunch of leftover porridge. Afterwards he went to the library to read on different subjects, writing clunky looking notes in his notebook. A few new words to memorize, a few more terms to learn in basic meteorology(which had been a useful subject more than once), another equation he hoped was correct but wasn't too worried about being incorrect. The librarian helped him find a book on geography when he was finished with his usual subjects. He found that they had their own quiet bond, and he appreciated that.

As he went home he tipped his brown knitted cap back, and his gaze went towards the blue, afternoon sky, distant wisps of white clouds floating lazily through the expanse. He was going to join Soldier. His mother knew, but the person he wanted to tell was Tifa. How would he do it? She rarely lingered when he was around, and her father wouldn't have her talking to him if he could help it. He thought about the water tower. It was a popular make out place for some of the older teens, but since it was late fall perhaps it would be unoccupied, he supposed. 

Would Tifa understand? He didn't want to kiss her just yet. He wasn't worthy of that. He just wanted to talk. Neighbors talked to each other, and Tifa was a sweet person. She wouldn't be the type to leave him hanging in the frigid night. He hoped he was right, at least. But, first thing was first: talking to Tifa.

Maybe he would knock on her door before going home. There was some time before her father came home.

As he approached his cottage, Cloud heard a rustling noise and a high pitched mewl. He stopped, then quietly but quickly rounded toward the sound. There was someone's behind sticking out of the holly bush. His blue eyes narrowed; someone was harassing his helpless kitten! He squeezed his fists and stomped over with a grimace. "Hey! Get away from there!"

The person jumped at his harsh command, then stumbled into the bush as they twisted around. Cloud grabbed them by the front of their coat and dragged them out of the evergreen branches, and he almost let go when he realized who he was about to rough up.

Tifa.

She was frozen in his grip, her dark cherry eyes about to bug out of her head and her legs quaking from his surprise attack. Cloud's hostile visage immediately became horror struck, and he carefully got her back on her feet. "O-oh, Tifa. I-I didn't know it was you. Sorry."

She took a step back, her coat catching the edges of the bush. "Cloud...um..."

He bit his lip and cast his eyes downward. Well, he ruined his chances now. Why couldn't he just speak up? Why? She was ready to dart back into her house, and then her father would find out what he had done and probably hound his mother over it. _Shit_.

A tinny meow punctuated the short silence, and he noticed the kitten rub against his leg in greeting. He bent down to scoop it up. When he looked back up, Tifa was still standing there, her head tilted slightly to the side. "I, uh...I found it outside the walls, and, um..."

Tifa's eyes widened just a moment, like a secret had been revealed to her. "Oh. You were protecting her, is that right?"

He nodded quickly, nervously. "Yeah, I-I didn't know it was you. I know you wouldn't hurt a kitten."

The sound of her giggle made his heart glow. Tifa came closer, then reached out her arm to pet the kitten. It leaned into her touch. "Why not bring it inside? It's gonna get really cold out."

"I want to, but I don't know if Ma can afford it," he blurted out. He immediately cursed himself for showing such a weakness to her.

"Oh." Tifa continued to study and pet the cat, occasionally looking at Cloud as well. Was she judging him? She was growing more relaxed around him by the second. "Hm. I could take the kitten, if that's alright..."

"You would?"

She nodded firmly. "Yeah. Papa said I could have a pet, anyway."

Cloud glanced down at the cat, then rubbed the top of its head. His finger touched hers once, and then he pulled back. "You'll make sure it gets lots of attention?"

Tifa laughed a little. "I'll play with it every day after I practice on the piano."

"Oh, so that's what that noise was..."

She looked quietly dismayed, and Cloud shook his head anxiously. "I-I was joking, Tifa! I like listening to you play piano. It's nice."

Cloud wondered if she would scold him for his horrible joke, but she only seemed to relax further, a gentle smile growing on her face as she came to know her neighbor. "Thank you!"

"No need to thank me," he almost inaudibly muttered. Slowly he reached out his arms towards her as he held the kitten still, offering the furry little creature to her. "Take care of it."

"Does she have a name?"

Cloud's eyes darted about before focusing on hers again. "Uh, no. I didn't know what name to give it—her."

"Hmmm...." She took the kitten and held it close to her chest. Her eyes looked to the sky and the clouds above. Then, they went back to the little white kitten. "Cirrus."

"Cirrus?"

Tifa nodded. "Yeah." She blushed. "It's a type of cloud we learned about in school."

"I know that," he said almost smugly. "I was learning about them last week at the library."

"So that's where you go," she whispered. Tifa smiled again. "Thanks, Cloud. It was really sweet of you to keep Cirrus safe like this."

He rubbed the back of his head. "I-it was nothing, really." He swallowed hard; he felt reticent to ask her about the water tower, even though it was the perfect time to. He stilled his nerves. It was now or never. "Tifa," he began, "I...would you meet me at the water tower tomorrow night? I wanted to tell you something."

"Why not tell me now?"

He looked around. "Well, I mean your father or, someone else—"

"Oh." She looked as if she was thinking his request over, her eyes on the top of the cat's head. Then her mahogany orbs reached his blue ones, and she nodded. "Okay. I'll be there after Papa goes to bed."

Cloud gave her a toothy smile. "Thanks, Tifa. I promise it won't take long."

"You brought me a pet," she gently teased. "It's the least I could do."

He laughed a little before petting Cirrus one last time. "Be good, Cirrus. I'll miss you." He looked up at Tifa, not as anxious as he had been earlier. "I'll see you tomorrow night, Tifa. Goodbye for now."

"Thanks again, Cloud. Have a good evening." 

They both turned away to go to their respective homes. Cloud felt good inside. He finally spoke to Tifa Lockhart, and even got her to agree to come to the water tower to talk. He looked back and noticed Cirrus' face watching him from Tifa's shoulder, and she let out a little meow that sent a pang through his heart. She would be more than okay with Tifa.

As he turned back and walked through the door of his cottage, his smile grew ever larger. He never expected an act of kindness to a small animal would lead to him finally speaking to the neighbor he favored with a faint, young love.


End file.
